Hot water boils faster, so to save time in the kitchen, you might be tempted to cook your pasta with hot tap water. This time-saving trick is bad for your health. The problem is lead. Hot water is much more likely to leach the heavy metal from your plumbing pipes. Using lead to solder pipes wasn't banned until 1986, and unfortunately brass plumbing parts might contain a bit of lead as well. Read more

Earth Day is coming up and although we usually celebrate by telling you what you should do, sometimes it's easier to listen to advice on what you shouldn't do. Not being environmentally friendly adds a huge cost to your wallet and your environment. Here are a couple of eco-unfriendly moves you should avoid doing: Not using public transportation: Even if you do have a car, try to switch off with Read more

When suffering from the pain and pressure of a sinus infection, getting a prescription for antibiotics becomes priority number one. New research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association put this practice into question. Hold onto your tissues folks — scientists found antibiotics don't ease patients' symptoms any faster than placebo pills. The small study included 166 adults Read more

Flushing your nasal passages with warm salt water can do wonders for congestion and sinus pain caused by colds and allergies, but use a neti pot improperly, and it could result in death. Louisiana's state health department has issued a warning for neti pots in response to two deaths thought to be linked to improper neti pot use. Both victims filled their neti pots with regular tap water instead Read more

We are excited to share one of our fave stories from Prevention here on FitSugar! When was the last time you got 8 hours of sleep or lifted weights at the gym? You're not alone if you can't remember: Even some of the most savvy women didn't get the memo about these health-wrecking habits. Find out if you're among them. From the Editors of Prevention You're supposed to watch saturated fat and eat Read more

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on FitSugar. By Leslie Barrie, Health.com Wish you had your own get-slim dream team? Well, you're in luck: we tapped celebrated weight-loss pros and asked them to share the one strategy they feel makes the biggest difference. Weave these seven wonders into your daily routine, and you’ll be wowed by how the little changes Read more

My luck with orchids has definitely been mixed. Some of my plants rebloom regularly, while others can't be coaxed to flower again no matter what I do. This particular orchid, seen here, was a gift from my mom three years ago, and it has rebloomed a stunning eight times in three years. As Flora Grubb told me when I visited her garden center, if an orchid seems to like where it is, just leave it Read more

Editor’s note: The following guest post was written by Robert Reid, the US travel editor for Lonely Planet. This will be my final blog post for you all! And this is your last chance to download any of our 15 free mini-guides off our website so go now and collect them all before they go away on September 5th. Since this weekend is Labor Day, I’m sure many of you already have your travel Read more

No matter how hard we try to keep clean, stains happen to the best of us. They usually occur at the most inopportune time landing on some of our favorite tees, sweaters, and fashion god forbid, white dresses. That said, we compiled a list of tried and true easy stain fighting tips from designers, clothing care gurus, and fellow editors. Now if only we could look just as glamorous as Lily Read more

The cold temps are moving in and it's that time of year for colds and the flu. To prevent getting the sniffles, sore throat, and achiness, you've got to avoid the germs. It's not enough to watch out for germy places in your home. You've also got to beware of places that are shared by tons of people, and for FitSugar readers, that means the gym. Yours may seem neat and clean, but that doesn't mean Read more